'Love, Loss' a light look at women and fashion

“Love, Loss, and What I Wore” is the theatrical equivalent of a mini-cream puff: sugary sweet, and not especially filling.

Comprised of airy vignettes detailing significant moments in the lives of women and the role played by clothes and accessories, this bite-size confection by Nora and Delia Ephron — based on Ilene Beckerman's 1995 book — recounts those sweet and sour, fashion-related moments familiar to almost every woman.

Along with riffs on the heels vs. flats dilemma and the challenge of the messy purse, the show examines the horrors of the department store dressing room, the relief that basic black affords, the motherly advice that goes unheeded, the self-delusion that drives a purchase, the self-doubt that halts it and the universal female lament: “I have nothing to wear.”

The tone — with a couple of notable exceptions — is wry and mostly lighthearted. In fact, director Karen Carpenter's pleasant if somewhat lukewarm production works best when it skips along, with the five actresses who comprise the chorale voicing their thoughts as part of a fashion fugue punctuated by the occasional solo.

However, snags occur when “Love, Loss” tries to address serious issues include death, divorce and rape and then treats them in a perfunctory manner that downplays their significance. Not only do those off-the-rack moments feel forced, they lack the kind of emotional resonance that would make this show into something more than an afternoon diversion or post-cocktail recreation.

The show unfolds reader's theater style, with actresses Nora Dunn, Felicia Fields, Roni Geva, Katie O'Brien and Barbara Robertson sitting in front of music stands and reading from scripts. The format allows actresses to rotate in and out of the show, as they have in New York City where “Love, Loss” has run for two years. In fact, replacements for the Chicago cast have already been named. Taylor Miller (“All My Children”) and Loretta Swit (“M*A*S*H”) will step in later in the run.

Robertson plays Gingy — Beckerman's alter ego and the de facto narrator whose stories inspire the others to recall their own fashionable tales — with her characteristic warmth and good humor.

As for humor, Fields delivers the show's funniest moments. Her well-timed quips earn her some of the heartiest laughs, and her nicely understated turn as a young cancer survivor makes for one of the show's most touching moments.

Dunn's performance serves as a nice showcase for her droll delivery. Still, the former “Saturday Night Live” star stumbled during a monologue, revealing some kinks that need ironing.

Rounding out the cast are Geva and O'Brien, a pair of engaging, vivacious performers who are clearly dressed for success.

<b>“Love, Loss, and What I Wore” </b>

★ ★ ½

<b>Location:</b> Broadway Playhouse at Water Tower Place, 175 E. Chestnut St., Chicago. (800) 775-2000 or<a href="http://www.broadwayinchicago.com"> broadwayinchicago.com

<b>Showtimes:</b> 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, Thursday and Friday; 2 and 7:30 p.m. Wednesday; 2 and 8 p.m. Saturday; 2 p.m. Sunday through Dec. 4

<b>Running time:</b> About one hour, 40 minutes, no intermission

<b>Tickets:</b> $68 to $78

Parking: $11 in the adjacent Water Tower Place parking garage with theater validation

<b>Rating:</b> For teens and older; adult issues